Chi no Namida
by TolkienGirl052
Summary: "...I felt the cool water hit, each glistering droplet falling like tears down my weary face, mixing with the deep red pool that cradled me like a mother sheltering her infant. I stared up at the swirling shadows of the sky, unblinking, even as the torrent of rain became a deafening roar in my ears. This, I knew...was the end."
1. Chapter 1: Prologue

-DOCUMENT START-  
>INFORMATION AVAILABLE FOR PUBLIC DISCLOSURE:<br>DOCUMENT#: GYT371085  
>CENTRAL GALACTIC LIBRARY, CORUSCANT<p>

_**When I came to this galaxy, I never thought I'd see my home again. I thought my time fighting monsters for the sake of humanity's freedom was at an end. And though I kept them in my mind; a lingering memory, strength to carry on, a promise to keep those I loved safe - somehow I knew I would never go back.**_

_**That is...until today. My name is Katherine Grace. And I battled giants.**_

-DOCUMENT END-


	2. Chapter 2: Unexpected

"Kate? Hey, Kate! Galaxy to Kate!"

I blinked rapidly as a set of sienna fingers snapped in front of my face, jarring me from my thoughts. With a heavy sigh, I shoved myself back from the communications terminal I'd been leaning on, absentmindedly rubbing my jaw where soreness had set in from propping my head up.

"Sorry, 'Soka." I muttered slowly, straightening my arms so I was supporting myself, staring at the bright blue hologram dancing before my eyes. Across from me, Generals Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi shared a worried glance. Catching their look, Anakin's Padawan Ahsoka Tano put a gentle hand on my back between my shoulder blades.

"You alright, Kate? You seem pretty down on yourself today." The young Togruta asked softly. I met her blue-eyed gaze, which was full of concern. I shrugged and reached up, clutching lightly at the red scarf around my neck. Immediately, understanding and sympathy flooded Ahsoka's expression.

"I'm fine. Just…" I paused and bowed my head, trying to collect myself as I felt a familiar prickle behind my eyes.

"Thinking of home." It wasn't a question. I nodded hesitantly, my grip tightening around the warm, bright red fabric. My thoughts were drawn back to what felt like a lifetime ago; when I'd first been given the scarf. Shaking my head before the memories could take hold again, I offered a half-hearted smile.

"Five years to the day." I stated simply, then took a deep breath, returning the conversation to its original purpose. "So, Jentero. What do we know about it?"

Seeming to accept my not wanting to talk about my past further, the Jedi kept speaking like nothing had happened. But, I could see the lingering worry in their expressions. I never liked speaking about home, and when I did, I was vague. Even then, they knew enough. "Jentero is a small planet in the Tirchi System, which has recently aligned with the Separatists." Obi-Wan explained. "It would not usually be too troublesome. However, when the Separatists took over, the droids launched an attack on one of our key outposts."

"Let me guess; the Council wants _us _to take Jentero back." Anakin huffed.

"So that no more innocent lives are lost, yes." Obi-Wan affirmed, despite his former Padawan's clear annoyance at being sent on yet another campaign.

"Wait," I spoke up, eyeing the holographic planet, "wasn't the outpost on Jentero a medical facility? Did they kill _everyone_?"

"Yes." Obi-Wan replied, heavy sadness in his tone. "And the colonists were none too happy about it. They've struck up a rebellion against the Separatists, but are being slaughtered by the hundreds."

"Are we fighting their war for them, or is it like Onderon again?" I demanded bitterly, and Ahsoka visibly winced at the mention of the planet where she'd aided rebels in a stand against their own Separatist occupation. The cost had been high. I knew the young Jedi hadn't quite gotten over it yet.

Surprised by my frustration, Obi-Wan fell silent for a moment, seeming to contemplate his next words very carefully, "Neither. We are only to aid the rebels, but that means we must fight." I nodded solemnly, keeping quiet. _I can only hope it's not a repeat of our most recent battles._

"Sirs." We all looked up to see Captain Rex approaching. This time, my smile was genuine as my best friend moved to stand beside me. "We are approaching the planet, but there's no sign of the Sepies."

"That's...not right. Our intelligence made it clear there was a blockade guarding the planet. It's not like the droids to just pack up and hightail it." Ahsoka furrowed her fine brow, gazing past the hologram out the viewport, where the bright green planet was becoming larger by the second. "Something's...really wrong."

"I sense it too." Anakin agreed grimly, turning to stare at the planet as well.

That's when everything went to shit.

The _Crusader _jolted violently, knocking us all off our feet. I managed to turn slightly so I didn't slam my head on the durasteel floor, throwing my hands out to stop my fall. As I hit the ground, I pulled my arms in and rolled, my body absorbing the impact evenly.

As quickly as I had fallen, I scrambled to my feet and clung to one of the glass screens for support as the ship continued to plunge out of control. Sparks showered down from above, the whole ship vibrating with the strain, a constant rumble coming from our groaning engines. I raised an arm to shield my face as electrical wires came loose, hanging precariously.

"Is everyone alright?" Someone called from the front, probably one of the engineers. I hurriedly helped Anakin, Obi-Wan and Rex up, noting that Ahsoka was very dazed. I got down on my knees and put her arm around my shoulders, looping mine about her waist to support her. I carefully hoisted her to her feet as she tried to shake off her dizziness.

I brought my attention to the others. "You guys okay?" Three firm nods later brought overwhelming relief. Other than a little banged up, they indeed appeared to be fine.

"Sirs, you should see this!" One of the troops called from the front viewport of the bridge. Letting Ahsoka stand on her own, the fours of us sprinted over to see what was happening.

Shock...was an understatement.

"That's impossible." Anakin breathed in disbelief. I could hardly comprehend it myself. Instead of a vibrant, glossy green planet, we were now staring at one that looked startlingly like Naboo. Wide bodies of sparkling blue surrounded enormous landmasses, the light blue atmosphere glowing into the black expanse. It looked extremely familiar. It wasn't Naboo - too big for that. So where in the galaxy were we?

"Sir, our engines are severely damaged. We need to land, and soon." An engineer called up from the left side of the walkway, peering at us from the lower controls.

"Looks like that planet's our only option. We can make repairs there." Obi-Wan nodded. "Take us down." There were a few more small tremors as the limping engines tried to compensate the commands the system was being given. Slowly but surely, we began to descend into the planet's atmosphere. Not deviating his gaze, Anakin stated what we were all thinking,

"I've got a bad feeling about this."


	3. Chapter 3: Home

While the emergency landing was relatively uneventful, everyone on board let out a simultaneous sigh of relief when we touched down. Ya know, instead of crashing. And exploding. I had gotten many eye-rollings when I had announced over the comm, "Attention crew, this is General Grace. We have a little problem with our entry sequence, so we may experience some slight turbulence and, then, explode."

_Hmph, _I thought in annoyance as the four of us made our way down to the main lower hangar, a couple men from the 501st and 212th joining us. _They may not get my references, but it's still damn funny._

Our group stood patiently as, with a hiss of depressurization, the huge ramp in the hangar lowered with a dull mechanical thump. Shielding my eyes from the harsh brightness of the sunlight, I sauntered down the ramp and stepped onto the surface. The ground beneath my feet was soft and moist, and I felt grass tickling my ankles.

Ahsoka, Anakin, Obi-Wan, Rex, Cody and their men joined me on solid earth. My vision adjusted, and I took a startled step back, giving an unexplained gasp.

We were staring up at a cyan blue sky with puffs of white cloud lazily rolling by. Lush green grass surrounded the area, small flowers pushing up here and there. There were patches of trees in different areas farther away, and mountains beyond that. In the other direction, a small cluster of buildings, like a town of some sort.

Unsuccessfully trying to hold back tears, I walked forward a couple paces so I was away from the shadow of the ship before collapsing on my knees. My 3DMG clanked against my side and the metal gave a thud of protest. I heard my friends rush forwards as harsh sobs burst from my throat, tears making sparkling trails down my cheeks before they fell silently to the ground. My hands on my thighs curling into fists, I trembled as I wept, squeezing my eyes shut.

Anakin put a hand on my shoulder after a long minute and crouched beside me. "Kate, calm down." Eyes snapping open, I realized how childish I was being. Struggling to get a grip on my emotions, I sniffled, not bothering to wipe away the wetness. "You know where we are?"

Nodding, I got to my feet and stared out at the lands I had not seen in an eternity. Staring out over the grassy plains, I felt a wide smile tug at the corners of my mouth as I brushed at my tears. "Obi-Wan, Anakin, Ahsoka...welcome to my home." I glanced over my shoulder and let the smile onto my lips.

My happiness faltered when I saw steam rising from below the ship, not too far from the ramp, and a large skeletal hand protruding. "Did we...crush something, sir?" Rex piped up.

"Yeah." I smirked. "Good thing too - we would've had a real problem on our hands otherwise." I gave the bone a swift kick and it shattered.

"Sirs, incoming!" Cody cried suddenly, pointing to the horizon.

I squinted, and gasped again, this time in absolute joy. More tears welling up in my eyes, ignoring the calls of my friends, I sprinted towards the approaching group. Panting, I ran harder than I ever had in my life, my gear slapping lightly against my side as I moved. _Please let them all be there. Please let them be alright. _I pleaded, willing my legs to go faster as I practically flew across the terrain.

"Commander! Commander Erwin!" I called out breathlessly. I skidded to a stop as the group of riders halted their steeds, the familiar face of the Commander gazing down at me in shock. I offered a watery smile, trying to regain my breath. "Commander Erwin, sir. You have no idea how good it is to see you again."

"Katherine? What happened to you?" Commander Erwin Smith demanded, dismounting. "Last we heard, you'd been devoured by a Titan." I blinked in mild confusion before what he'd said clicked, and my memory sharpened. That's right, I had...I had _died. _Died saving…

My gaze skipped over the faces of my old friends. Mikasa, Eren, Armin, Sasha, Jean, Petra, Gunther, Oluo, Eld...Levi. He stared down at me with a hardened, passive expression, but I could see through it in an instant. He was shocked to see me in one piece. After all, he'd last seen me inside a Titan's mouth as its maw snapped shut. It must've been a couple days before Expedition 57. But...could it have been the _same_ day?

"It's...a long story, Erwin. One I'd be happy to tell you back inside Wall Maria...assuming we're in Titan territory?" I said calmly, breathing returned to normal.

"Kate!"

I looked over my shoulder to see Ahsoka, Anakin, Obi-Wan, Rex and Cody running up. Immediately, the whole of the Survey Corps soldiers tensed, hands going to their blades. "Wait!" I raised my hands in a neutral gesture. "They're friends."

"Kate, you have _seriously _got to stop doing that. We're on an unknown world, and-" Anakin trailed off when he noticed the group of soldiers in front of me. I scoffed and rolled my eyes.

"I'm not five, Anakin. I told you, this is my home." I reassured. "Commander Erwin, might I introduce Generals Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker, Commander Ahsoka Tano, Commander Cody and Captain Rex of the Grand Army of the Republic." I turned completely to face the Jedi, smiling warmly. "Obi-Wan, Anakin, this is Commander Erwin Smith of the Survey Corps. This...is my family."

Both sides seemed both cautious and awe-struck; you could cut the tension with a knife. Most of them were staring mainly at Ahsoka. I knew they'd never seen anything non-Human or Titan before, so it was to be expected. But, as always, Oluo Bozado, couldn't keep his mouth shut. "What is that thing?"

Ahsoka's expression became angry. "_Someone _who will cut you in half if you ever call her a _thing _again." She growled, hand moving to her lightsaber.

"Easy, Ahsoka." Anakin advised.

Suddenly, a hand clamped down on my shoulder and whirled me around, another coming up in a right hook that caught me square in the jaw. I stumbled back and collapsed on the ground, startled. Rex and Cody drew their blasters, and the Jedi immediately ignited their lightsabers.

"Stop!" I shouted, hauling myself back to my feet with a grunt. "Just...stop. Put your weapons away, please. I deserved that."

Facing Corporal Levi Ackerman (whom I only stood about an inch taller than), I took in his enraged look. It was anger born out of terror, and I knew that. So, I tried not to take it personally when he grabbed me by the collar and lifted me almost clean off the ground.

"You're damn right you did! Listen here, you little shit! You don't _ever _pull a stunt like that again! What the fuck were you thinking?!" Levi practically screamed at me. Breaking eye contact for a brief second, I caught the looks of surprise on his squad's faces, each one looking about ready to intervene.

"You're more important than I am, Levi." I stated simply. Shocked by my answer, I watched the anger disappear as he dropped me back on my feet and took a small step back. "Mankind needed you, Humanity's Strongest, not some broken girl like I was. I knew I could save you, so I did. Plain as that."

His normal mask of boredom cast to the wind, his expression became one of horror and lingering fear. "I-I thought you were…"

"I'm not." I replied softly, putting a hand on the slightly shorter man's arm. "Levi, I'm okay. I'm right here, and I'm perfectly fine." He nodded solemnly and looked away. Taking a deep breath, I looked back at Erwin. "I know you all have about a million questions, including what happened, who these people are and where the fuck their weapons came from; but unless we want a horde of Titans on our asses, I suggest we get to the Walls as soon as possible." I glanced at the Star Wars characters, who appeared quite lost. I sighed. "Or, we could head back to the ship for a while. I think right now, that's the better option."

"Ship?" Petra spoke up from behind Levi.

I chuckled. "Come on." I waved for them to follow us, but they looked very hesitant. I cast a look at Obi-Wan, aka the Great Negotiator, for help.

He took a small step forward and cleared his throat. "Commander, Kate is correct. I do not know what these 'Titans' you refer to are, but if it's urgent we get somewhere safe, our ship is very close."

"Erwin, please. I know you don't trust them, but I'm asking you to trust me. It may sound crazy, but I've been galaxies away, doing things you couldn't possibly imagine. These people have been my family for the past five years. I love them, and I trust them wholeheartedly. No harm is going to come to any of you." I pleaded.

After a moment's consideration, Erwin nodded and they mounted up again. We all trooped back to the ship, every single one of the Survey Corps soldiers staring in awe as we approached the massive cruiser's main ramp. When we reached the bottom, I turned as Erwin spoke up. "Levi, Eren, Ackerman, Arlert, come with me. The rest of you, stay here and be on guard for any Titans."

"Rex, Cody, grab a couple men and stick with them. Keep your communicators on and warn us if you spot anything." I told our men.

"Understood, sir." Cody nodded.

"Sir, what are 'Titans?'" Rex added nervously as behind me, Obi-Wan and Anakin led Erwin and co. into the ship. I paused and turned back to them.

"You can't miss 'em, trust me." I smiled over at the young soldiers. "Hey Petra, Oluo, Eld, Gunther?" Each one gazed up at me. Their expressions were still ones of awe, but relief was there too; relief that I was alright, mixed with distrust of the new arrivals. "Make sure my boys don't get themselves killed, will ya?"

Oluo scoffed and began spouting off nonsense about how stupid it was that they didn't know what Titans were, and general vulgarities. I laughed quietly to myself and hiked up the ramp into the ship. The familiar corridors helped settle my frayed nerves and the storm of emotions inside me. I fell into step beside Levi as we made our way to the bridge and glanced around. Ahsoka was walking silently beside Mikasa, Anakin was eyeing Eren and Armin, and Obi-Wan was leading the way with Erwin close behind.

_This...should be interesting._


	4. Chapter 4: Confusion

"Oluo, would you shut up already?"

Petra Ral groaned, sitting on the large, cool metal ramp of the massive 'ship' that loomed overhead. The thing made Petra uncomfortable, but at least it provided a decent amount of shade from the hot sun. The young ginger sighed as the older member of her squad continued on his tirade, ignoring her protests. Gunther and Eld stood nearby, talking quietly with each other about something or other, serious expressions on their faces.

All of a sudden, a blaster shot rang out. Without thinking, the members of Levi's Squad whipped out their blades, spinning about to face the source of the disturbance.

"S-sorry! I didn't mean to! I just wanted to see how it worked!"

Sasha Blouse gave a nervous laugh, carefully setting one of the Clone Trooper's rifles back down on the ground. Jean Kirstein walked over and whacked her upside the head.

"Jeez, Sasha, you are scary stupid. You could've killed someone with that thing." He reprimanded.

"But Jean!" Sasha whined. "They look like our rifles! Did you see how much more powerful they are?! They shoot light, instead of buck shots. That's _so_ cool! Do you know how effective those would be against the Titans?!"

"They're dangerous, Sasha. What if you had hit someone, or hurt yourself? Who do you think the Commander would blame, hmm?" Jean pressed, irritated.

Sasha burst out in a fit of giggles. "Probably you, Horse-Face!" She bumped Jean on the shoulder playfully before striding off. The brunette wandered over to where the men Kate had called her 'boys' were clumped. Sasha examined them all carefully as she approached. She may have been curious, but she wasn't truly stupid. She didn't trust these men, but she was hoping that could change. They seemed to have been wearing armor of some kind, all white, but some of them had yellow or blue markings on them. Equally odd helmets were scattered around their feet, ones that didn't look at all comfortable or protective.

As she got closer, Sasha took stock of their faces, and paused with a start. They all shared the same face! Granted, their hairstyles were different, and some had tattoos or different colored eyes, but they looked almost identical. _Twins, maybe? _Sasha wondered. _Nah, there are too many of them to all be twins. _Figuring asking would be kinda rude, Sasha resumed her bouncy pace and grinned when a couple of them noticed her.

"Hiya!" Sasha announced excitedly, plopping down on the ground. They just blinked at her, obviously not knowing how to respond. "Oh, sorry. I'm Sasha. Sasha Blouse. Nice to meet ya."

Captain Rex stared down at the energetic young girl, who inexplicably reminded him of Commander Tano. More so when she'd first become Anakin's Padawan than now, but the girl, 'Sasha', had the same fiery spirit in her eyes.

"Tch. Quiet bunch." Sasha rolled her eyes, but her smile remained.

"Oi, Sasha!" Jean called, making his way over. Sasha frowned at him as he stopped beside her and gave her leg a gentle kick. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, stop babying me, Horse-Face." A few chuckles went up from the troopers at the insulting nickname. "Kate trusts these guys, and that's good enough for me."

"Pfft. I think Squad Leader Katherine's gone off her rocker. She said she's been away for five years - she was barely gone an hour after Corporal Levi got back." Jean replied, disregarding the men's presences. "Being swallowed by a Titan and living to tell about it can do that to ya." The men of the 501st and 212th cast each other startled looks at that remark.

Sasha bowed her head, her voice quieting. "Aren't you glad she's back though? I was so relieved to see she was alright. She was so nice to us all."

Jean sighed and sat next to her. "Of course I'm glad, Potato Girl. I didn't mean it like that."

Captain Rex finally couldn't take it any longer, and asked the questions that had been burning at the forefront of his mind. "Excuse me." Both Sasha and Jean looked up at him. "Are you saying General Grace was _killed_?"

"General?" Jean demanded, eyes wide. "Kate is a Corporal - same as Corporal Levi. And...yeah." Jean winced, giving a pained noise and closing his eyes for a brief moment. "We received word that she had been eaten by a Titan not two hours ago. Corporal Levi came running in like a madman, yelling that we had to go after her. She saved his life, but lost her own in the process. At least, that's what we thought."

"Hey." Sasha chirped. "Is it true? Was Kate really with you guys for five years?"

"Sasha," Jean shook his head, "you know that's impossible."

"Tch. Tell them that." Sasha gestured to the men, then looked at them expectantly.

"Yes." Cody nodded, taking a small step forward. "_General _Grace's been fighting with us for five years now."

"Fighting...what? A war?" Sasha gave them a curious look, her eyes widening when Cody nodded again. "Whoa! No way! Five years fighting a war, but to us its only been a few hours! Squad Leader Hanji is gonna flip!"

"Quiet down Potato Girl." Jean nudged her. "Or you'll attract every Titan in the whole damn area."

Sasha blinked, seeming to realize something. "Wait…" She leapt to her feet, Jean scrambling after her. "Jean, aren't Titans attracted to large groups? Like we had in Trost?" Jean winced again, remembering the death and destruction of that battle, but nodded. Without another word, Sasha turned and tore off up the ramp into the ship.

"Sasha?! Sasha, wait!" Jean charged after her, catching up and grabbing her arm. "What's gotten into you?"

"Look around you, Horse-Face!" She waved her arms frantically. "We're practically screaming 'all you can eat buffet' to the Titans! We may as well have targets painted on our backs!"

Jean gazed around, seeming to realize as well what a mess they'd gotten themselves into. There were a lot of people outside already, and this 'ship' was enormous. Who knew how many more people were inside? As if on cue, the ground began to tremble. Oluo finally stopped ranting, Eld and Gunther fell silent, Petra jumped up, and the Clones tightened their holds on their weapons.

"TITANS!"


	5. Chapter 5: Explanation

"Alright. You all have questions. So, since we crashed on your world, you guys have at it."

Hitting the bridge, I waved a hand to Erwin and Levi as we assembled around the communications terminal. I knew it would only be a matter of time before Titans stumbled upon us. Even so, the _Crusader _would be relatively safe, and I still held strong trust in Levi's Squad. If anyone could fight off a couple monsters on flat ground, it was them.

"Where exactly are you from?" Erwin asked, crossing his arms and gazing around at those opposite him.

I smirked. "That one could take a while."

In a rather large nutshell, Obi-Wan began to explain that he, Anakin, and Ahsoka were Jedi, peacekeepers of the galaxy. The Jedi existed to serve the Force, the energy that surrounds and binds the galaxy together. When the Republic was formed, the Jedi swore to uphold and protect it, and for four millennium, they were able to keep the peace. Their enemies were known as Sith, people who want to rule and crave power above everything. They used a twisted image of the Force known as the Dark Side while Jedi used the Light. For a thousand years, the Sith had disappeared into legend and myth until thirteen years ago when a Sith slaughtered Obi-Wan's master before he was supposedly killed by Obi-Wan himself.

Ten years later, Separatists broke away from the Republic and formed the CIS, or the Confederacy of Independent Systems and started the Clone Wars. Rex and Cody were actually two of many clones engineered in secret to fight for the Republic so by the time the CIS attacked, the Republic already had their army. Jedi went from becoming peacekeepers to soldiers and for five years, the Clone Wars have raged.

Obi-Wan paused several times to answer other questions that came up, and in all, the explanation took about twenty minutes. In that time, I stayed silent and simply listened, trying to take it all in. Once Obi-Wan was finished, a silence hung in the air for a couple moments, before I finally spoke.

"Erwin?" I questioned softly. "What's the date today?" Seeming shocked, Erwin didn't answer right away, so I amended my question. "Is it the same day I disappeared?"

"Yes." He nodded, but didn't elaborate further.

Obi-Wan, Anakin and Ahsoka shared a troubled glance. "I swear, I'm in fucking Narnia." I huffed. "Erwin, I've been gone for five _years_." Seeing the disbelieving looks on the faces of my Survey Corps friends, I heaved a sigh and shook my head. "I'm not crazy. But I'll leave that for you all to decide. Now," I looked to the Jedi, "you lot have questions too, I assume."

"Indeed. First of all, what are these 'Titans' you keep referring to?" Obi-Wan raised an eyebrow.

"Tch. That's new." Levi said monotonously, the signature look of boredom back on his face. "People who don't have a clue what the Titans are."

I chuckled. "I told you, Levi, they're not from around here. There _is _life out there, in the stars. Maybe not close, but you're certainly not alone." I turned my attention back to Obi-Wan. "Right, Titans. We're unsure. They're big, disgusting, fast, naked, and humans are their main course. It was said over a century ago that they appeared, pushing humanity to the brink of extinction. The surviving humans built three walls: Maria, Rose, and Shina. Humanity had endured a century of peace until the Colossal and Armored titan broke through Wall Maria. We've lost Wall Maria to the Titans, and we've been trying to regain it by sealing the breach, but we haven't made it that far. But…" I smiled over at young Eren Jeager. "...that was before we discovered the impossible."

"What do you mean?" Anakin spoke this time.

"Eren? Do you mind if I explain what you can do?" I said lightly. The teen winced, but smiled back and nodded. "This is Eren Jeager. He has the ability to create and control a Titan's body. When the Colossal Titan broke through Wall Rose a couple weeks ago, Eren was able to seal the 8-meter hole with a boulder and save Trost."

"You carried a _boulder_? One big enough to seal an 8-meter hole?" Ahsoka asked in disbelief, and Eren nodded shyly.

"Where are we?" Anakin glanced at me, but kept his main focus on the soldiers.

"Not in our galaxy. Not anymore. You wouldn't have heard of the planet." I replied calmly. "Wall Rose is about fifty kilometers or so to the...north?" Erwin nodded silently. "There are about 100 kilometers in total between each Wall. That allows for multiple cities, farmland and the like. About 25 thousand people lived within each territory, but with the fall of Wall Maria, that number grew. There are about 75 thousand people living inside Wall Rose at the moment, and another 40 thousand or so within Shina."

"So what, humanity is on the brink of extinction?" Ahsoka stated blankly. I cast her a confused look. She sounded...hopeless. Like simply what we were telling her made it seem like humanity had already lost.

I bowed my head and stared down at the cool metal beneath my hands, closing my eyes momentarily as I remembered. Even now, we'd lost so many. "Yeah." I said softly. "We've lost a lot, and we'll continue to lose so long as the Titans exist."

Anakin, Obi-wan, and Ahsoka all gave me pitiful looks. "What kind of nightmare has humanity been going through?" A Clone whispered from behind. I paused, shocked to realize that all activity on the bridge had halted.

A low rumbling noise could be heard in the distance, and all the loose metal began to shake violently. Startled, we all gazed around. The Jedi seemed more confused than any of us - after all, they had never felt that tremor before. But...the five of us Survey Corps soldiers had.

On cue, the comm. on my wrist beeped loudly. I hurriedly answered, lifting my arm so I could speak clearly. "Grace here. What's going on?"

One glance at those from this world told me all I needed to know.

Shit was about to get serious.


	6. Chapter 6: Titans

"Petra, you and Gunther take the one on the right. We'll handle the two on the left. Protect the trainees." Eld commanded.

Through their fear, Sasha and Jean were both equally a little insulted. They were soldiers too, weren't they? They didn't need protecting. _No..._Sasha thought to herself as she watched the members of Levi's Squad advance on the three Titans barrelling across the terrain. _They want us to stay here and protect Kate's men. They don't even know what Titans are; I wouldn't be surprised if they didn't know how to fight them._

As Gunther moved around the Titan with his cable attached the the Titan's shoulder, it grabbed at him, but Petra was already maneuvering towards the neck. With one quick slice, the Titan dropped to the ground and remained still. Steam started to roll off the corpse and the skin slowly began to dissolve.

Oluo and Eld had managed to kill one of their two Titans, but the other one was an abnormal, and headed straight for Sasha, Jean, and the Clones. The Titan's dull eyes shone with a stupid yet murderous light, seeing the young trainees and the men as nothing more than its next meal as it strode dumbly towards them.

"Sir, what the hell is that thing?!"

Rex raised his twin blasters and aimed at the Titan's head. "Blast it!" He ordered.

"No, wait! It won't do any good!" Sasha cried, waving one of her blades precariously in an attempt to stop them, but it was too late. The men opened fire on the Titan, letting waves of blue energy bolts fly into the air towards the towering giant. Many hit, but were ineffective, much to the shock of the men.

The Titan continued running towards them and was only a few feet away, but it's eyes quickly dimmed and the Titan dropped to the ground, forcing everyone to dive out of the way as the massive body collided with the soft grass. Levi landed on top of the Titan's head and lowered his blades. He eyed the Clones that were all staring what he assumed to be shock; he couldn't tell from the helmets.

"Is everyone alright?!" Kate called, skidding to a stop and starting to help her friends up. Levi jumped off the Titan's head and landed a few feet from Kate and the Clones.

"Tch. Your friends will get themselves killed if they act so rash and fearful again." Levi stated in his usual emotionless tone. Kate glared at him angrily as she pulled Rex to his feet.

"Levi, don't be so condescending." She snapped, then her tone softened. "It was my mistake for not telling them about the Titans before leaving them alone."

Kate's glare faded and she gave a gasp of surprise as the ground began to tremble slightly once more. There were more Titans coming - many more. Erwin, Anakin, Obi-wan, Ahsoka and the other Clones had now regrouped with the others as Levi's squad move off slightly to gauge where the Titans were coming from. "We're falling back." Erwin said.

As the remaining Survey Corps members all hopped back up onto their horses, Erwin shot a green flare straight up into the air. Wincing at the loud noise, Kate sighed and turned to the men. "Best guess is there were other groups out looking for me. That signal," Kate pointed to where the green smoke was slowly dissipating, "is telling them to regroup. We're all getting out of here."

"We're abandoning the _Crusader_?" Ahsoka demanded, shocked.

"Just for now." Kate assured. "Out here, we'll be sitting ducks. Inside the Walls, we'll be much safer." Kate gazed out over the horizon, in the general direction of Wall Rose. "I hope." She finished quietly, so no one else could hear her.

A few minutes later, multiple horses with riders all wearing green capes came into view, slowing to a stop nearby.

"KATE!"

Kate rolled her eyes, a smile appearing on her face as she recognized the voice. The high-pitch, excited tone could only belong to one person. "Hanji." She said to herself, turning to face the newcomers. Before she could say anything, the scientist was upon her, spouting out question after question a mile a minute. Kate laughed, and held up a hand to halt the slightly older woman's tirade. "Calm down, Hanji! I can't understand a word you're saying."

Hanji began to ramble slightly slower as more and more members of the Survey Corps regrouped.

"General Skywalker." Erwin said. "We don't have enough horses to transport everyone. Your men will have to travel in the supply carts." He pointed to the rickety horse drawn carts. Anakin raised an eyebrow, but nodded in agreement.

The Clones slowly filed into the carts and placed their weapons at their sides. Ahsoka sat next to Rex. A Survey Corps soldier slowly walked up to her and handed her one of the green cloaks. Confused, Ahsoka accepted it with a small smile. "You're gonna have to keep that on, Ahsoka." Kate called over as she climbed into a different cart. "It's not personal; people here just aren't used to seeing anyone who's not human, or a Titan. We'll get it sorted out though." Ahsoka faked a smile and wrapped it around her orange skin, lifting the hood over her head. It was quickly pulled back.

"Wow, what is this?"

Ahsoka turned to see Hanji with wide eyes and staring at her. "What is she?" Hanji went to grab at one of Ahsoka's lekku. Ahsoka slapped her hand away and glared at the scientist in annoyance.

Kate gave a muffled laugh. "Hanji-san, leave Ahsoka alone." Hanji pouted but sat back down on her horse, muttering an apology. "Ahsoka, this is Chief Scientist Hanji Zoë. Try not to be too insulted by her curiosity; she forgets to ask sometimes."

"Right." Ahsoka said to herself, shaking her head as Commander Erwin hollered from the front of the group,

"Advance!"


	7. Chapter 7: Karanes District - Part 1

I watched as the soldier at the front of the cart snapped the reins, giving a sharp, "Heeya!" The horse started forward, falling into a steady gallop as we began to move.

We traveled for what seemed like hours, but I could soon see the large 50ft wall of Wall Rose's Karanes District. The carts slowly passed the odd tree or house but besides that the fields around them were empty, and it was quiet...too quiet. As they were passing through a small town of around eight or nine buildings, a shadow fell over the road ahead. My head whipped up just in time to see a large, dark shadow descending from the sky.

"Hold up!" I hollered, seeing where it would land. The carts around us slid to a stop just as the belly flopping Titan made contact with the overgrown cobblestone, throwing debris and dust up everywhere.

Mikasa was already in the air as she drew her blades and sent a cable flying into the wall of one of the buildings. She made it about halfway up the cable before she let that one go and sent another one into the back of the Titan's neck. The cable pulled taught, and with the aid of her compressed gas, Mikasa swung around and sliced into the vulnerable part of the Titan's neck. It dropped to the ground with all the grace of an anvil, but our cart driver kept going as if nothing had happened, maneuvering around the dead body.

Ahsoka and the Clones all stared wide eyed at the Titan's dead corpse and at Mikasa. I smiled, seeing the looks on their faces. "By the Force." Ahsoka breathed in awe. "That was incredible."

"Yeah, that's Mikasa Ackerman for ya!" I shouted, feeling proud of the younger girl as she mounted back on her horse and rejoined Eren and Armin. Eren frowned but continued riding. I could tell he was jealous of his adoptive sister's skill; he always had been.

Shock made my eyes widen as we approached Wall Rose. Usually, only one or two Titans would have been around the gate, hoping for an opportunity to enter or devour us when we left for expeditions. My shock stemmed from seeing at least seven Titans crowding around Karanes District and the outlying city. I scrambled to my feet, trying to keep my balance on the jostling cart, and gave my gas canisters a tap. I had enough to fight, and still had four of my blades.

"Ackerman, Kirstein, Blouse, come with me!" I hollered to the nearby carts, grabbing the trigger mechanisms from my belt.

"Kate, what are you doing?!" Anakin called out, but I ignored him, instead climbing up on the side of the cart with expert agility.

"Don't stop! Get these men to safety!" I told the driver.

"Yes sir!" He nodded, urging the horses to go faster. Passing into the town, I fired off one of my hooks at a nearby building. The retraction system pulled me forward, and my gas propelled me skyward. I connected the handles of the blade to the storage area where the blades were being held, drew them and sent a cable into one of the roofs. I landed and Jean passed me a flare gun, loaded with a red flare. I fired straight up, clamping my other hand over my ear. Erwin noticed the signal right away and began to turn off to a side street.

"They're clear." I announced. Sasha, Mikasa, and Jean all landed a few feet behind me with their blades drawn. Thinking quickly, I pointed to the Titans, eyeing our opponents. "Ackerman and I will distract them; you two stop any that get too close to the squad."

Sasha and Jean nodded before sending hooks into the other buildings and taking off after the battalion of soldiers.

"I'll handle the first three." I said to Mikasa. "You think you can take the last few?"

Mikasa let a small smile across her lips as she nodded. "Of course."

I nodded before looking back at the Titans. I leaned forward and let gravity pull me downward as I fell forwards off the building. I sent a cable into the walls and let the pressurized gas push me forward. I did this until I reached close to the gates. Two Survey Corps members were slowly kiting one Titan away while the others stood around looking bored and uninterested. That is until they saw the battalion.

While the giants began slowly lumbering towards them, I took the opportunity to send my hook into one of their shoulders. Using the hook as a base, I swung around the back of the Titan then sent both hooks into the neck. I sliced through and killed the Titan instantly.

I jumped off the back and quickly launched a cable into another wall of a building to escape the grab of another Titan. That one quickly dropped as Mikasa cut through the nape of it's neck, then jumped away.

I turned in time to see Levi and his squad dealing with the other Titans. _Well, not everything went according to plan, but at least…_My train of thought was interrupted by a Titan that had run right by me. It was headed straight for the battalion. I turned to latch on, but the cable fell short.

My eyes widening in horror, I began to call out, but it was already being taken care of. A cable latched onto the back of the Titans neck and a Survey Corp member slashed at the neck, killing the Titan. "Yeah!" I could hear in the distance. "First kill!"

Sasha stood tall and proud on top of the Titan's dead body with a large grin on her face. Relieved, I sighed and smiled. Young Sasha Blouse was certainly a fine addition to the Survey Corps. She was shaping up to be a great soldier.

There was a loud grinding, rumbling noise and I turned to see the stone gate to Karanes District opening. "Alright, lets get inside!" I called out, waving to Sasha and Jean. I patted Sasha on the back as the teens fell into step beside me. "Nicely done, Blouse."

"Thank you, ma'am." She beamed at me, holding herself a little straighter with pride. "Ma'am?"

"Hmm?" I raised an eyebrow as we passed into the shadow of the Wall.

"It's good to have you back."


End file.
